Tencent buys 15% of Helldivers 2 dev Arrowhead, gives studio 'enormous economic leverage'

Tencent widens its grip on the video games industry with an investment into one of the most popular game devs of 2024.

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Tencent acquired 15.75% of Helldivers II developer Arrowhead in 2024, new reports from Swedish newspaper Dagens Industri indicate.

Overall, Arrowhead was valued at 5 billion kronor, which is about $522 million. With 15.75% of shares purchased, and a valuation of $522 million, Tencent bought around $82 million of Arrowhead's shares. The Swedish video games developer made around $76 million in operating profit throughout 2024 on roughly $100 million in revenue, representing a thunderous 76% profit margin. Helldivers 2 was one of the most popular games of 2024 and has sold over 12 million copies to date.

The news, which was never publicly disclosed by either Tencent nor Arrowhead, adds context to the developer's upcoming plans.

Instead of working with Sony to fund its new game, as it had done with Helldivers II, Arrowhead will self-fund its next project. The studio will be in full control over the next game: "We'll call 100% of the shots," executive John Pilestedt said in May.

Exactly how this self funding would work had been mysterious at the time, but the new Tencent investment certainly adds more color to Arrowhead's assertions.

Speaking to DI, Pilestedt said that the Tencent investment offers "enormous economic leverage," and that the deal could introduce Arrowhead to Chinese gamers.

"It also opens up opportunities for China as a market. Gaining access to the Chinese player base is the holy grail in the gaming industry," Pilestedt said.